US authorities announced the arrest of the leader of a gang known as "La Diabla" (The Devil) in a joint US-Mexican operation, after she was accused of running a deadly baby-trafficking and organ-smuggling network.
CBS News reported that Martha Alicia Méndez Aguilar, a member of Mexico's Jalisco New Generation cartel whose nickname translates as "The Devil," allegedly lured poor pregnant women to remote locations where they were subjected to illegal cesarean sections, often resulting in their deaths.
According to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, the accused then harvested the organs of deceased mothers and sold their newborn babies to American couples for up to 250,000 Mexican pesos, or approximately $14,000.
In this regard, Joe Kent, director of the National Counterterrorism Center within the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, said: "This is an example of what terrorist groups are doing to diversify their sources of income and finance their operations."
"The lives of innocent women and children depended on" her capture, Kent added.
He commended his agency and other U.S. agencies for providing the intelligence that led to the arrest of Mendez Aguilar by Mexican authorities on September 2 in Juarez, located directly across the border from El Paso.
Senior intelligence officials told CBS News that Mendez Aguilar remains in custody in Mexico. The investigation into the trafficking network is ongoing.
